Lawsuit claims Allentown police hit cyclist with stun gun

Suit claims officer tried to stop cyclist for riding without a headlight, hit him with a Taser when he fled.

An Allentown man who claims he was injured when police shocked him with a stun gun as he biked on Seventh Street last year has filed an excessive force lawsuit against the city and two police officers.

Edgardo Garcia Fontanez, 41, of the 400 block of North Seventh Street, was riding a bicycle about a block from his home the night of Jan. 17, 2014, when police officer Ryan Murray attempted to stop Fontanez for riding without a headlight, court records say.

According to the lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Allentown, Fontanez heard someone yelling "stop," but was not aware it was a police officer. Fontanez then felt the shock of a Taser, which caused him to crash the bike, the suit says.

As he lay in the street, Fontanez was subjected to a second Taser shock before Murray and an unidentified police officer punched Fontanez in the head, face and body, knocking him unconscious, the suit alleges.

Fontanez suffered head and facial injuries and was treated at Sacred Heart Hospital after his arrest, the suit says.

The lawsuit notes Murray allegedly used the Taser even though the device's manufacturer has warned for years against using one on a person who is at risk for falling.

"There have been several catastrophic cases where people hit with a Taser while running have fallen and hit a curb," said Fontanez's attorney, Patrick Geckle. "I have a real problem with using a Taser on someone who was riding a bicycle."

A Taser is a weapon manufactured by Taser International of Scottsdale, Ariz., that fires two dart-like probes that stick in a person's skin to deliver an incapacitating electric shock.

Allentown police Assistant Chief Bill Lake did not immediately return a call Monday. City spokesman Mike Moore said city officials had not received a copy of the suit and declined to comment.

The suit is the latest of at least 10 excessive force lawsuits filed against the Allentown Police Department and its officers. Several of the cases allege officers used excessive force by using Tasers improperly.

According to an affidavit filed after Fontanez's arrest, Murray said he saw Fontanez riding a bicycle at night without a headlight and attempted to stop him to give him a ticket. Murray said Fontanez fled, riding on the sidewalk and forcing pedestrians to jump out of the way.

Murray and two other officers chased Fontanez until he crashed the bicycle in the 500 block of North Seventh Street. The report makes no mention that Murray or either of the other officers used a Taser, but notes Fontanez ignored commands to put his hands behind his back.

The report says Fontanez was taken into custody after a "reasonable amount of force" was used to place him in handcuffs.

Geckle said among Fontanez's injuries recorded after his arrest were burns from the Taser probes.

The suit claims the police officers' conduct violated Fontanez's constitutional rights to be free from unlawful search and seizure, and from unreasonable force, and to be secure in his person and property.

The alleged violations are a result of the city's turning a blind eye to problems in the police department, including the use of excessive force and the failure to monitor and discipline officers, to enforce policies and procedures or to train officers in the proper use of Tasers, the suit claims.

The suit also alleges the officers are liable for assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Fontanez is seeking $300,000 in compensatory and punitive damages and attorney fees and court costs.